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This important Hermetic dialogue, the 'Virgin of the World' was very nearly lost to the mankind. It appears in only one book, a 5th century AD anthology of classical texts, collated by Johannes Stobaeus of Macedonia for his son Septimius. 'The Virgin of the World' describes a dialogue between the goddess Isis and her son Horus, in which she explains the origin of the Egyptian "gods", and how they were sent from the heavens to bring civilization to humanity. The book is replete with Egyptian god-names, and eulogises Egypt as a type of earthly paradise, "free from trouble", all of which argues for a very early provenance, relatively free from Judaic and Greek influence. Internal evidence points to the 5th century BC - almost 2,500 years ago - making 'The Virgin of the World' the earliest Hermetic document that we possess.

Max Heindel's mysticism is set firmly in the western tradition of the Gnosis. Following a series of disappointments and ill health, Heindel claims to have been visited by a Spiritual Being, who he identified as an Elder Brother of the Rosicrucian Order. From this entity he received a compelling explanation of the spiritual evolution of both the Cosmos and Humanity, couched in terms best suited to the logical, linear mind of western culture. 'The Rosicrucian Mysteries' is an elementary exposition of these teachings and training methods, and a perfect introduction to the philosophy of this important teacher of the Western Mystery Tradition.

Thomas Hammerlein was born in Kempen, North Germany, some six hundred years ago. He took the cowl at the age of twenty, entering the monastery of St Agnes where, now known as Thomas à Kempis ('Thomas from Kempen'), he spent the remaining seventy years of his life. It was in this secluded environment that he wrote his devotional classic 'The Imitation of Christ' which had its origins in a Dutch lay religious society, the Brethren of Common Life. Respected equally by Christians of all denominations, the work is divided into four 'Books': on the spiritual life, on the interior life, inward consolation, and the sacrament of the altar. 'The Imitation of Christ' is a profound meditation on the Christian spiritualexperience, giving guidance and explicit instructions on renouncing the world and discovering the Eternal within, by emulating the life of Jesus. It is hard to overstate the influence of this work: with the exception of The Holy Bible, it has been printed in more copies, and changed more lives, than any other book.

Rudolf Steiner's contribution to humanity has been prodigious: farms, schools, clinics and laboratories have all been established on the spiritual philosophy he expounded. Hitler and the Nazis banned all his works. The Anthroposophical Society, established by Steiner in 1912, has adherents around the world. It is open to all creeds and colours, demands no endorsement of doctrine, and holds as a universal principle the striving for the knowledge of the spirit in man and the cosmos. In 'Knowledge of the Higher Worlds,and Its Attainment' Rudolf Steiner reveals - to those willing to undertake the necessary discipline - the method by which this 'knowledge of the spirit' may be obtained.

'The Analects of Confucius' has had the most profound effect on Chinese Society, and influenced much of S. E. Asia. The book was not written by Confucius, but by his disciples some 30 to 50 years after the Master's death in 479 BCE. However, the main arguments are undoubtedly those of Confucius himself. Self-improvement is the essence of Confucian thought: one must cultivate 'ren', (empathy), the five main qualities of which are liberality, trustworthiness, respect, earnestness and kindness. Mastering these, one becomes a 'junzi' or Prince of Virtue, setting an example which others will follow to produce a peaceful and just society.

Marcus Aurelius was Emperor of Rome from 161 - 180 AD. His rule was absolute and - as the lives of other Emperors reveal only too clearly - he was able, with impunity, to indulge in any vice, crime or licentious behaviour he chose. Yet Marcus Aurelius resisted all such temptations, thanks to his belief in stoic philosophy. In The Meditations, (which was never intended for public view), Aurelius examines his inner nature, intimately describing his flaws and talents, and admonishing himself to live a good life. It is astonishing that this book exists - filled with great wisdom, and written by a Roman Emperor who reaches out over almost 2000 years to speak with us about the mysteries of life and death.

Horace Walpole is credited by many with the invention of the Gothic Novel. The author claimed to have written 'The Castle of Otranto' - a medieval mystery story set in a haunted castle peopled by fantastic characters - after a night of dreams. It is a fitting origin for this dark book of terror and villainy, an attempt, in Walpole's own words, "to blend the two kinds of romance, the ancient and the modern". Walpole's literary experiment has proved to be a great success, and The Castle of Otranto has rarely been out of print since its first publication in 1764.

John Stuart Mill's classic has at its heart a brave (some might say Quixotic) attempt to define both the constraints on individual freedom, and the degree of coercion governments may legitimately use to limit that freedom. His solution is a "very simple principle" - that one may coerce only to defend oneself or others from harm. This deceptively straightforward axiom has deep social consequences - it would, for example, ban all government intervention to make populations behave 'better'. The resulting ramifications have been argued over by social scientists for more than 150 years, and never more so than in modern times.

Edwin Abbott was a mathematician who used the idea of 'Flatland' - a world of just two dimensions - to poke fun at caste-ridden Victorian Society. The book also allowed him to explore the nature of dimensions and our own perceptual limitations. In the book a three-dimensional being can view the workings of 'Flatland' yet remains invisible to its two-dimensional inhabitants. Abbott then leads the reader into the contemplation of new dimensions that may yet exist beyond our own 'real world' of height, width and length. Similar developments in Modern Physics have greatly increased 'Flatland's' popular appeal, with Isaac Asimov hailing the book as "the best introduction into... perceiving dimensions".

This classic of devotional literature was written sometime in the late seventeenth century. Its author, Brother Lawrence, was born Nicholas Herman, and served as a soldier before becoming a monk in his middle years, some time after receiving a severe wound that left him in lifelong chronic pain. Following a series of spiritual trials, Brother Lawrence discovered a system that allowed him to be conscious of the presence of God on a continual basis, throughout all of his daily life. In this book, (collated by Joseph de Beaufort, counsel to the Archbishop of Paris), this simple, holy man explains the means and practices by which anyone may learn to walk continually in the presence of the Almighty.

'The Interior Castle' is a classic of Christian mysticism, written with some reluctance by its author, St Teresa of Avila. The saint spent most of her life as a Carmelite nun, and was noted for her piety and the frequency of her visions. In 1577 she was instructed by her superiors to produce a work on prayer for her sisters in the order. The result was a book of great spiritual significance, in which she wrote of her vision of the human being as a crystal globe, containing seven mansions. It is through these that the soul must make a progressive pilgrimage, to final union with God in the seventh mansion. St Teresa describes the prayers and meditations for this spiritual journey in great detail, and also warns of the obstructions and barriers that the Devil erects to prevent passage into the various mansions. Full of encouragement and advice for the modern aspirant, 'The Interior Castle' is as relevant today as when it was first written over four hundred years ago.

In 1882, at the age of 21, Rudolf Steiner's life was changed forever by a seemingly chance meeting on a train. Traveling between Vienna and his home town of Pottschach, Steiner fell into conversation with Felix Koguzki, a lowly herb-gatherer who claimed to have personal and direct knowledge of higher worlds of spiritual attainment. Koguzki arranged for the young man to meet a mysterious individual, someone Steiner refers to only as a 'Master', who seems to have guided him successfully towards spiritual enlightenment. Steiner's book 'Theosophy' was published 28 years later, in 1910, and is a detailed account of this 'spiritual science', a method of attaining to the higher worlds that is replete with descriptions of esoteric realities, and what one may expect at the various milestones of human development. This is a book that will repay a slow and careful study, a treatise on the higher worlds that the reader can, with profit, return to again and again.